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Author Mikul, Chris, author.

Title The eccentropedia : the most unusual people who have ever lived / by Chris Mikul ; illustrations by Glenn Smith.

Publication Info. London : Headpress, 2012.

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 Rocky Hill - Downloadable Materials  EBSCO Ebook    Downloadable
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Description 1 online resource : illustrations
data file rda
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index.
Note Print version record.
Summary The contrarian is the individual who probably springs most often to mind when people hear the word 'eccentric'. Contrarians are the people who do not give a fig for social conventions and determinedly go their own way, whether it's in their clothing, habits, beliefs, hobbies or living arrangements. Their spiritual father is Diogenes, and they have absolutely no doubt that they are the sensible ones and it is the rest of the world that is out of step. Contrarians, especially in England, are often associated with the aristocracy (who after all, do often have the time and money to be able to live exactly as they please), yet they may come from all walks of life, and indeed, some of the most notable have literally lived on the streets, becoming in the process well-known and often well-loved individuals. It is the contrarians that John Stuart Mill was thinking of when he wrote in On Liberty, 'That so few now dare to be eccentric marks the chief danger of the time.' Mill understood that conformity in a society breeds stagnation. By rejecting conventions, eccentrics demonstrate new ways of thinking and living. Of course, what may seem outrageous or crazy to an eccentric's contemporaries may be judged as eminently reasonable and sensible by later generations (Charles Waterton's early conservation efforts and Victoria Woodhull's tilt at the White House being but two of many examples that could be given).
Subject Eccentrics and eccentricities -- Biography.
Eccentrics and eccentricities -- Anecdotes.
BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY -- Historical.
BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY -- Personal Memoirs.
BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY -- Political.
BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY -- Presidents & Heads of State.
BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY -- Reference.
BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY -- Rich & Famous.
BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY -- Royalty.
Eccentrics and eccentricities. (OCoLC)fst00901271
Exzentriker. (DE-588)4153437-2
Genre/Form Anecdotes. (OCoLC)fst01423876
Biography. (OCoLC)fst01423686
Added Author Smith, Glenn.
Other Form: Print version: Mikul, Chris. Eccentropedia. London : Headpress, 2012 9781900486828 (OCoLC)761851093
ISBN 9781909394018 (electronic bk.)
1909394017 (electronic bk.)
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